biodesigns Rejects Standard Of Care Sockets – So Should You

biodesigns declares they are a “bucket free” zone.

You see, we know something. And we think you know it too. Simply stated, there’s something just not right with the prosthetic industry. There’s something wrong when an entire field-from prosthetists to manufacturers, to therapists to doctors to the media and to just about everyone else who is in some way, shape or form involved in prosthetics-is focused on everything but the problem that affects you, the one who has to live with it, the most: your socket, or as we prefer to call it, your interface.

Sure you hear people say “oh, the socket is the most important part of a prosthesis.” Or, “the socket fit is everything.” Then how is it they continue to use interface designs that are decades old? Designs that pay little attention to biomechanical principles, that completely ignore the health of the wearer? You see, they can talk a good game all day long, but in the end, they’re focused on the components, the “sexy” stuff like microprocessor knees, powered ankles, or the latest electric hand. We get it, that’s all great gear, and it has its place. But guess what? With an entire industry enamored more with the attached accessories than the interface itself, what do you think suffers? Bingo!

At biodesigns, the interface is everything to us. Sure we provide the latest in cutting edge technology, and yes we’re probably more familiar with how to optimize manufacturer components than just about anyone else in the field. But tuning complex prosthetic systems is child’s play to us. Where we really dig deep is in the science of the interface. You see, we don’t describe our designs as merely “a good fit.” Making a tube or bucket “fit” your limb is no challenge. Having it stay on and be comfortable should be a given, not some great achievement. That’s like the prosthetist hitting the power button on your freshly delivered bionic leg and saying “yep, the light came on, I think we’re all goood.”

The serious challenges lay beyond simple comfort and suspension. Our focus is in extracting every ounce of effort you put in to the system and transferring it to the rest of the prosthesis. Our goal is to make you one with your entire system, so much so, you forget you are wearing it. This is embodiment. And to do this we have to rise above the incredibly low threshold of “yep, looks like a good fit!” or “gosh, it looks like it’s gonna stay on” and work on truly replacing what you lost. This means we have to mimic your actual skeletal motion, not absorb it in some loose fitting bucket. This means we have to encourage your neural network to start regrowing by fooling the brain into thinking your arm or leg is back. This means giving you a High-Fidelity Interface system. Do you think we arrived at that name by accident? Fidelity: the degree to which a copy of something shows the true character of the original. Cambridge dictionary. Isn’t that what you are looking for? To get as close as possible to what you lost? A bucket or a tube can’t do it. That’s why this is-and will always be a “NO BUCKET ZONE.”

–Randall Alley, ceo, biodesigns, inc.